- Claire Bolderson
- 2 Nov 06, 06:53 PM
OK, so I鈥檓 Brit - we don鈥檛 have election advertising the way you do here. But can anyone tell me the point of all those endless 30- and 60-second commercials on television?
There seem to be more than ever this year.
I ask only because I鈥檝e yet to meet anyone who has actually been well informed by what they have seen flash up on the screen.
If it鈥檚 a negative message - as the vast majority look like - it鈥檚 usually delivered in deep, serious and hurried tones suggesting impending doom if you don鈥檛 vote the right way.
The rare positive ones are bathed in a warm glow, usually include several shots of the candidate's family and have a syrupy voice-over designed I expect to make us all feel good about ourselves - and about them.
And for what purpose? I met a woman the other day who parroted back at me some of the outrageous allegations she had picked up from one particularly insulting TV ad - except she applied it all to the wrong candidate. She was so sure of her facts yet utterly confused.
Ask most people what they are thinking about the election and almost immediately they鈥檒l start talking about the negative ads and .
鈥淚f you watched all the ads, you wouldn鈥檛 vote for any of them,鈥 was the verdict of a waiter I met in the other day.
So here鈥檚 my question for any of you wavering voters out there. Have you ever seen an election TV spot that (a) you felt was really informative and (b) changed your mind about your vote?
Claire Bolderson presents 大象传媒 radio's World Tonight and Newshour
- The Reporters
- 2 Nov 06, 03:19 PM
Firedoglake uses a video of a John F Kennedy speech to argue Americans can demand better from their government by voting for Democrats.
But Lake Minnetonka Liberty says John Kerry's comment on education and the war in Iraq is "pretty much what all Democrats believe" - calling them the "party of hate".
And Martin Manley at Jam Side Down looks ahead to 2008, where he sees only four serious contenders for the presidency - all of whom he likes more than "the guy we've got now".
- Guto Harri
- 2 Nov 06, 09:49 AM
I imagine that few of the candidates in this election have either the time or inclination to hang out in cyberspace, but half an hour on the vast social network offers an intriguing insight into the contest. "Bush is Bad" is the most popular political grouping here, with 166,969 members.
MySpace Democrats have more members than MySpace Republicans and has drawn more support than any other public figure in this category. An unavoidable one-upmanship affects everyone on MySpace because the website keeps a strict count of your "friends".
Politicians at a time like this could be forgiven for being paranoid about the numbers. But some will find comfort clicking on. has a cool-looking profile, 17,512 friends and a long list of people who've wished him "happy Halloween" as well as begging him to run for president.
has some similar pleas, one suggesting she should secure Obama has her running mate. A woman introducing herself as "carrot top" tells the New York senator she's "excited you're coming to my home town this weekend". Another simply wishes the former First Lady "good morning".
The most bizarre comment is directed at Republican hopeful . "Black Mary the Turquoise Desert" tells him she's "descending from above to give... a kiss of divine black female love". Asche Krieger assures the senator that he'll vote for him in 2008 whether he's on the ballot or not.
What I can't establish is how many of these sites are genuine. There's another on MySpace with 509 friends, who believes he's 31 years old. John McCain is 70. And the profile I found, curiously has only 189 "friends", including "planet" and "spider".
Perhaps the politicians are better off staying clear of this virtual world after all.
Guto Harri is the 大象传媒's North America business correspondent.
